


A Proper Date

by comicc_bookk_jawnss



Category: The Haunting of Bly Manor (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Comfort, Comfort/Angst, Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Light Angst, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-16 01:28:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28698432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/comicc_bookk_jawnss/pseuds/comicc_bookk_jawnss
Summary: Jamie wants to take Dani on a proper date for their one-month anniversary, but it doesn't go as planned.
Relationships: Dani Clayton & Jamie, Dani Clayton/Jamie
Comments: 4
Kudos: 93





	A Proper Date

“You sure you’re alright?”

“Yeah, ’course. I’m with you.”

Jamie gave her an easy smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. And from the way her upper body was fidgeting, Dani could tell her legs were shaking under the table.

It happened sometimes when they were on the road for a while, especially if Jamie wasn’t driving. It was Dani’s cue to pull over, wherever they might be. Jamie would protest, and Dani would say that Jamie was perfectly welcome to stay in the car if she wanted to, but she was getting out to stretch. And Jamie would crack that crooked smile and follow her out.

Recently, Jamie had finally grown comfortable enough not to protest. And she’d been the one driving today, anyway, though it had been a long trek. Jamie had been insistent on making it to D.C. for their one-month anniversary, so they could go to a fancy restaurant for a proper date.

All Dani cared about was making Jamie happy, and Jamie had been so eager, so excited all week. But now, the day had finally come, and Jamie’s demeanor had changed. She was affectionate, as always, but not nearly as flirty, not as talkative, period. Dani had tried to suggest they do something more low-key, but Jamie had maintained this was what she wanted.

But here she was, wearing the same outfit she’d worn to Owen’s mum’s funeral, compulsively sliding the corner of her paper menu in and out of its leather holder. Dani had bought appropriate attire once they’d arrived in the city that afternoon, and cheeky Jamie had finally made a reappearance, but only briefly.

Dani wouldn’t have thought she would miss getting teased so much, but she would now gladly make a fool of herself if it meant just getting Jamie to give her a genuine smile. She was having a hard time getting Jamie to even look at her, though. When Jamie wasn’t burying her face in the menu, her eyes were darting from table to table.

She was starting to think that maybe Jamie was having second thoughts about going on a date in public with her. After all, they weren’t exactly inconspicuous in a dining room chock full of heteronormativity. But that had never seemed to bother Jamie before. They were cautious, of course, about PDA, always aware of their surroundings, but Jamie had never seemed scared of it.

Just then, Jamie reached across the table, took her hand and squeezed it, even flashed a quick grin. Was that a warmer smile than the last? In any case, Dani’s theory had been disproven. _So what was it?_ It was almost like Jamie had never...

Dani wished she could kick herself under the table, even moreso when she saw their waiter returning.

“Do you ladies know what you’d like to drink?”

Jamie looked at Dani expectantly.

“Actually, I’m sorry. I think we’re gonna have to take a rain check. I’m not feeling too well.”

She got up, grabbing her clutch.

“Dani?”

Poor Jamie looked even more nervous now, caught off-guard. Wordlessly, Dani walked around the table as the waiter frantically moved out of her way, retook Jamie’s hand and pulled her along behind her until they made it outside. Then, she turned back to face Jamie, who seemed on the verge of tears.

“I’m so sorry! I should’a been payin’ more atten- ”

Dani pulled her into hug, cradling her head.

“Shh... it’s okay. I’m okay. I just needed an excuse to get us out of there.”

“What?”

Her voice had jumped an octave, and Dani had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. It wasn’t that it was funny, really, but it kinda was. Jamie had gotten herself all stressed out trying to make Dani happy, while Dani had been trying to do the exact to make Jamie happy. They really were quite a pair.

Dani pulled back, cupping Jamie’s bewildered face.

“Jamie, I need you to be honest with me, okay?”

She nodded.

“What do _you_ want to do tonight?”

“I - ”

Her eyes shifted back to the restaurant.

“Don’t think of it as a date. Just as... as any other day... We’re here in D.C. Where do you want to go?”

Dani could see she was starting to calm down, but she still looked hesitant.

“First place that comes to mind.”

Finally, Dani saw a spark returning to those hazel eyes.

*****

Half an hour later they were lounging on a green on The Mall, burgers in hand. Jamie’s first thought had been walking The Mall, but she’d dismissed it just as quickly. Dani was having one of her tired days — not that she would admit it, but Jamie could always tell. It’s why she’d insisted on driving, though Dani hadn’t napped as much as she’d hoped she would.

She flipped onto her stomach, leaning on her forearms, so she could face Dani who was lying on her back, one arm propping up her head.

“Thank you.”

She smiled shyly as Dani grinned.

“Black-tie isn’t really my style, anyway.”

Jamie raised an eyebrow as her gaze wandered to Dani’s slim-cut dress.

“Could’a fooled me.”

Giggling, Dani gripped Jamie's chin, sat up, putting her half-eaten burger back on its wrapper, then leaned in to kiss Jamie’s already blushing cheek.

“I forgot something in the car. Be back in a sec.”

“Okay.”

Jamie watched her for a moment, then put her own half-eaten burger on its wrapper, turned back onto her back and sat up, hugging her knees with one hand and grazing the grass beside their blanket with the other. She still didn’t quite understand how she was lucky enough to have a girlfriend who had not just willingly — but happily, purposefully — abandoned a 5-star restaurant for a make-shift fast food picnic just so she would feel more comfortable.

Suddenly, her head jerked forward as something hit it from behind.

“Oi!”

She looked back to find a football — or soccer ball, as Dani had so blasphemously called it when Jamie had bought it a couple weeks back — rolling to stop in the grass. She looked up to find Dani frozen in horror on the edge of the green, hands covering her mouth. Jamie felt the corners of her mouth twitch.

“What was that for, then?!”

Dani started rushing over, blushing furiously.

“I’m so sorry! I meant to hit your back.”

“Right... ” Jamie cocked her head, smirking. “Poppins, why ya tryna hit me with a football?”

Dani slowed to a stop, kneeling down beside her and grabbing the ball.

“You’ve been uptight all day. You need to blow off some steam.” She looked up, smiling. Jamie’s smirk dissipated. “So please go run around.”

Dani held out the ball to her. For a moment, Jamie just gaped at her, but then she shook her head.

“Jamie, do you know how many times you’ve changed positions since we sat down?”

“I’m - ”

“Jamie - ”

“I can’t! This is ma first - ”

She’d kept it to herself all day, and now, in the eleventh hour, just when things were turning around, she’d finally let it slip. Her mouth went dry. She looked down and scratched the back of her neck, trying to think of a way to salvage this. It wasn’t a bell she could unring, or laugh off.

But the longer she waited, the more awkward it would be. She reluctantly looked up to find Dani... _still_ smiling. No hint of discomfort or even surprise. _Huh... oh._

Jamie looked down again, laughing nervously. Dani’s behavior was making more sense now. And Jamie really did appreciate how sweet she was being — how sweet she’d been all night — more than she could say, but...

“I - I just, I want to... I _have_ to do this properly.”

“Says who?”

She looked back up and went to object but couldn’t think of what to say. Dani winked and offered the ball again.

Finally, Dani’s persistence was rewarded with her favorite lopsided grin. But she couldn’t dwell on it for long. Suddenly, the ball slipped out of her grasp as Jamie’s lips crashed into hers, sending her toppling back. As she laughed, Jamie pulled back, brushing Dani’s hair out of her face.

“Ya know... ”

Smiling, Dani interlaced Jamie’s hand with hers.

“There will be plenty of time for _that_ when we get to our room, but I’m not letting you stay all wound up until then. Go score some touchdowns.”

Ever since Jamie had “chastised” her for calling it a soccer ball, Dani had decided to lean into it just to frustrate her. But Jamie just laughed.

“What about you?”

Dani smirked.

“Who do you think you’re supposed to be showing off for?”

*****

For the next hour, Jamie had run around barefoot — dribbling, scoring “touchdowns” between trees, kicking the ball up to herself and bouncing it on her thighs — as Dani cheered her on. For someone who’d apparently never played on an actual team, she was pretty incredible, Dani thought.

That being said, she had managed to hit herself in the head, thanks to a wayward bounce off a tree. Dani had jumped up immediately, feeling all the more guilty for her own wayward shot earlier. By the time she’d made it to Jamie, a red mark was already taking up half her face.

But Jamie herself had been rolling on the ground laughing, clutching her stomach as tears streamed down her face. And _that_... that was proper first date material, as far as Dani was concerned.

Soon after, they’d gotten back in the car for the 20 or so minute drive to the motel they would be staying in, and Jamie had promptly passed out in the passenger seat.

Dani smiled now as she returned to the car after checking them in. Jamie was still out cold, which presented her with a decidedly adorable dilemma _._ There was no way she could carry Jamie up the stairs to their second floor room. [Maybe someday](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28635258), but for the time being, even the first floor might’ve been a non-starter considering Dani could only just barely lift her.

She knew because she’d tried once while they’d been making out, managed to hike Jamie up all the way to her waist. And Jamie had been very impressed. But no sooner had they resumed than had Dani’s arms and legs, already shaking under the strain, given out, sending them both tumbling to the floor laughing hysterically.

Dani imagined a repeat onto concrete would be decidedly less amusing, so that left waking her up. But she just looked so peaceful that Dani couldn’t bring herself to.

*****

Jamie wasn’t sure what time it was, but it was still dark when she'd woken up to find Dani sound asleep behind her in the passenger seat, which Dani had apparently reclined as far as it would go. It had taken Jamie a moment to get her bearings. The last thing she remembered was getting into the car.

But then she'd started putting the pieces together; and feeling Dani’s chin resting on her shoulder, Dani’s arm wrapped around her, squeezing them into this seat definitely not meant for two, Jamie well and truly could have cried.

But she'd had more pressing matters to attend to. Reaching around blindly, she'd found their room key in the cupholder, gently extricated herself from Dani, opened the car door, then turned around to scoop Dani up. After gently sliding her off the seat, Jamie had readjusted her a couple times, until her head had finally slumped against Jamie’s shoulder, instead of uncomfortably lolling back against nothing.

“There we are.”

“Mmm.”

Evidently, Dani agreed. Laughing softly, Jamie had kissed the top of her head, then set off.

It hadn't been easy, exactly. Tiny as she was, Dani still had a few pounds on Flora, and Jamie's legs had already started to cramp from all her frolicking around The Mall. But she'd handled the strain, welcomed it even after everything Dani had done for her in the past few hours alone.

Thirty minutes later, Jamie was sliding into bed, now thoroughly exhausted. As it turned out, getting Dani changed into her pajamas had been the more difficult task. Every time she'd touched her, Dani, still mostly asleep, had giggled and squirmed like Jamie was tickling her — which, after a certain point, Jamie was, making things exponentially more challenging for herself.

But it had been worth it. Finally, she’d gotten Dani, now clad in a T-shirt and shorts, tucked in; gotten changed and washed up herself in all of five minutes; and could now sink into the left side of their bed. [They’d switched sides a few weeks ago, after Jamie had had a nightmare](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28431540); and it was then, too, that Jamie had made a tacit promise not to run away if she started feeling scared or upset or otherwise emotional.

So she remained in place when the tears finally came as she processed her milestone. It had certainly not gone to plan, her plan anyway; but, in fact, it had gone far better than she ever could have planned, or dreamed for that matter.

She felt a tugging on the corner of her T-shirt, then saw Dani slide over. But Dani’s eyes remained closed, and she continued tugging. For a moment, Jamie thought Dani herself was having a nightmare, but she seemed calm. And then it hit her: Dani was trying to turn her onto her side.

Jamie gave her an assist and immediately felt Dani’s arm wrap around her back, rubbing it. Then, she felt Dani’s other hand gently press her head down onto her chest before softly smoothing her hair. As she closed her eyes, she felt Dani sigh.

And with that, Jamie, for the first time in her life, _happily_ cried herself back to sleep.


End file.
